"In the beginning...

…there was passion, manifested as doodles of airplanes in the margins of school textbooks and paper planes all over my bedroom. During my childhood, I devoted a good deal of my time at our family farm in the distant town of Kortezubi in the Basque Country. My favorite activity was to pretend my grandfather's old tractor was a starship and get it ready for "takeoff". The desire to fly and to do it with imagination was merely ingrained in me.

Unfortunately, I was a horrible student, and many naysayers shattered my hope of becoming a pilot, and I began believing that I would never achieve my dream. One day, I read the following quote by Henry Ford: "When everything seems to be going against you... remember that airplanes take off against the wind, not with it," and I realized, just like airplanes, I could go against all the odds and achieve my dream. My mindset changed, and I was fueled by the desire to prove them wrong; I moved to the United States to seek better opportunities and pursue my passion."

My experience in the industry

"As soon as I arrived to the United States, I began searching for ways to finance my flight training; as all of you know, it is not cheap. Fortunately, I was awarded the James C Ray Scholarship to fund my flight training and the Lorenzo Walker Full Tuition Scholarship towards earning my A&P. Currently, I am a Corporate Pilot and Flight Instructor with over 2500 hours and have worked for about three years as an aircraft mechanic. Apart from flying and working on planes, I started an aircraft brokerage firm and created Aircraft Broker Academy to help others become successful aircraft brokers and start their own businesses." 

- Alexander Bengoechea (founder & Instructor)